‘Immaculate’ river creature — with ‘fleshy’ lips — discovered as new species in China
In a river in eastern China, an “immaculate” creature with “fleshy” lips swam through the fast-flowing water. Nearby scientists spotted the patternless animal — and discovered a new species.
Researchers were in Zhejiang Province in 2021 to survey local fish, according to a study published Oct. 16 in the journal ZooKeys. In a mountain stream, they caught 18 fish.
The fish lacked “obvious blotches or stripes” and didn’t match any known species, the study said. Researchers soon realized they had discovered a new species: Formosania immaculata, or the immaculate loach.
The immaculate loach is a small fish, reaching about 3.5 inches in length, the study said. It has an “obtuse” snout with “fleshy” lips and 13 whisker-like barbels on its chin.
A photo shows the immaculate loach’s “elongated” body with its relatively uniform brown-gray color. The tips of its fins are almost pinkish-orange, and is coloring blends in well with the surrounding rocks.
Researchers said they named the species after the Latin word for “immaculate” because of its “unique body” and lack of “blotches or stripes.”
Immaculate loaches live in “fast-flowing streams with gravelly and pebbly substrates,” the study said. The fish has so far only been found in one stream of Zhejiang Province. This province is along the southeastern coast of China, about 100 miles south of Shanghai.
The new species was identified by its coloring, snout and chin barbels, the study said. DNA analysis found the new species had between 4.5% and about 19% genetic divergence from other species of loach.
The research team included Wei Sun, Jia-Jun Zhou and Jin-Quan Yang.
This story was originally published October 24, 2023 at 1:43 PM with the headline "‘Immaculate’ river creature — with ‘fleshy’ lips — discovered as new species in China."
